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The battle to save the corncrake from extinction in Ireland is proving extremely difficult

The number of corncrake (Crex crex) - one of the enduring sounds of the Irish countryside - is now in "critical" decline despite more than €2m being spent on the battle to save the species from national extinction. The bird used to be widespread in Ireland but is now found only along the north coast of Donegal and in the west of Mayo and Connemara. According to the National Parks & Wildlife Service, numbers here have plummeted by 85pc since 1978. In 2016, a total of 108 corncrakes were recorded in Donegal and 60 pairs in west Connaught. Conservationists warn they are now involved in an eleventh-hour fight to try to ensure the survival of a species, so intrinsic to Irish birdlife. The overall spend since 2011 has reached €2.4m as part of an all-out battle to increase the corncrake population across the country. But, despite this outlay, the battle to save the bird from national extinction is proving extremely difficult.